Archive for the ‘light meal’ Category

favorite fresh rolls

May 14th, 2010

fresh rollsI have been attempting to up the percentage of fresh fruits and veggies that our family, but especially the kids, consume. Luke and I tend to eat a variety, but the kids tend to get sticky-stuck in their starchy rut. So the other night for dinner, I made what I thought were two of their favorites — cucumber arame salad and bok choy salad.

As it turns out, they both loved the arame salad as usual, but weren’t fans of the sprouted mung beans I put into the bok choy mix. They did eat a bowl each, as well as significant portions of the cuke-aame salad, so I’m not complaining.

Since I’ve also been brainstorming about good foods I can make ahead for days we’re on the road,  I wanted to test out fresh roll leftovers. With cheers ringing in my ears, I set out all the stuff to make the rolls. I made 12, thinking everyone could have 2, and we’d have some left for lunch the next day. However my little gobblers gobbled the entire batch up at dinner, so my leftover experiment will have to wait for another day. I was able to form another hypothesis tho — my kids will eat loads of veggies if they’re wrapped in a delicate rice wrapper! I’ll report back on the test results soon.

We get these at places like Pho Mai in Middletown or Pho Boston in the same plaza as the pungent wonderful Asian grocery store A Dong in West Hartford, off New Britain Ave. The first time I went there, I was transported back to Chinatown in Boston, thanks to the stunningly similar, er, aromatic ambience.

Usually the rolls have rice vermicelli, sliced fried tofu, thai basil and/or cilantro and maybe some lettuce. I had the noodles out on the counter, but spying the vibrant green sprouts in the playroom, I decided to swap starchy noodles for some buckwheat lettuce. I would like to try sunflower shoots next time but didn’t have any that were ready to cut yet.

Fresh Rolls with Hoisin Sauce

  • rice wrappers
  • avocado
  • tomato
  • shredded carrots
  • buckwheat lettuce
  • thai basil

I used a Hoisin Sauce recipe I found at high on health, but would tweak the recipe the next time using less tamari and more sweetener. And maybe molasses. I’d have to play with it and didn’t have time as everyone was sitting before I got to the sauce. The kids didn’t care for this really salty sauce, and ate them plain. I drizzled it over the bok choy salad and that was pretty good, but I ended up rinsing out the leftovers since it wasn’t a big hit.

The fresh rolls took me a few tries before I got the knack, but they end up being pretty easy to make. I had heard that you were supposed to dip the stuff, flat wrappers in a bowl until they softened, but when I did this, i ended up tearing them. What has worked best for me is to dip them or run them under water, and put them on my rolling surface (usually a plate) while very wet but still stiff. They soften as I add the veggies and by the time I’m done, I can wrap them up, much as I do a burrito — bottom up over the veggies, then each side, then roll up until the top flap is wrapped up.

These used to seem like such an effort for me, so I don’t make them very often. But this time, the sprouts took just a second to cut, the carrots just a minute to shred in the food processor, and once the avocado and tomato are sliced I was good to go.  I didn’t have any more cukes on hand, but we have also added julienned cucumber or really thin round slices (which look pretty if used as the bottom layer so that they end up pressed against the wrapper once it’s done), and finely shredded cabbage also brings a nice sweetness to the rolls. If you wanted to make them completely raw or didn’t have a chance to pick up rice wrappers, you can use the outer cabbage leaves, swish chard or collards. You can blanch the latter to make it more pliable.

Do you make fresh rolls? What do you put inside? And what do you use to dip them in?

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festive fajitas

May 12th, 2010

fajitasFor this weekend’s raw potluck, I decided to try something I’ve been wanting to attempt for a while now but thought would be too much work. Boy was I wrong! Especially when you have an adorable, clever helper!

Lucia and I worked in the kitchen together — I read the recipe, and she carried out all the tasks to make the corn chowder from The Raw Transformation. We added a few personal touches — after blending the soup and adding the corn, we also put in some chopped red pepper, chunks of the other half of the avocado, and chives she picked in the garden. We used frozen corn, and the next time around I would probably add more raw garlic (surprise surprise) and maybe some more spices, but I really can’t wait to try making corn chowder with fresh corn. I liked the soup, but something was missing, and since there’s no comparison between fresh and frozen corn, I’m hoping that using corn just cut from the cob will do the trick.

Then we made the fajitas, based on a recipe posted by Joz on Raw Freedom Community. I changed it up a little bit, and have posted my recipe below. While she was waiting for me to rinse out the blender carafe and tidy the counter, Lucia grabbed the washed veggies and made Fajita man. Poor Fajita man. She snacked on some of the skin off his mushroom face. Maybe he’s sad due to his lack of arms. Who knows? Without a mouth, he’ll never be able to tell us.

fajita manFestive Fajitas

  • 4 portobello mushrooms
  • 2 red peppers
  • 1 sweet onion
  • 2 zucchini

Marinade

  • juice of 2 lemons
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1/4 cup tamari
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 4 Tbs chili powder
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/4 cup onion
  • Tbsp umeboshi plum vinegar
  1. Thinly slice vegetables, place in bowl, set aside.
  2. Blend all marinade ingredients together until smooth. Pour over veggies and toss to coat evenly.
  3. Let sit at least 4 hours. Serve with collard, romaine, kale or cabbage leaves as a wrapper. Top with fresh salsa, cashew cream sauce, guacamole, etc.

The limes were a bit dry this week, otherwise I probably would have used more. But I have to say, this came out to be really tasty. Oh, and I would also add fresh cilantro in heavy doses if you have it. I used the leftovers on top of mesclun mix, and used the marinade to dress the salad. Delish! I served it cold, but would also try dehydrating it a bit for the warmth and to see the effect on the texture. This is a lovely party dish since it can be made ahead of time, as much  as a day or two, leaving you free for more important day of party tasks that always seem to rear their ugly heads at the last minute.

Sorry for the soft focus on the pics — I touched the lens with an oily finger and need to get some lens cleaner paper but haven’t had the chance.

Happy dining!

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cinco de mayo spanish rice

May 10th, 2010

At this weekend’s raw potluck, the theme was Cinco de Mayo and delicious dishes were everywhere, including (at the time I took the picture — a salad with sprouts and some desserts appeared later, but I was too busy eating and forgot to snap a picture):

* gazpacho — a creamy, blended version, with chopped tomato, cuke and cilantro for garnish

* corn chowder

* Ani Phy’s walnut cranberry butternut squash rice

* Spanish rice with mockamole

* chunky chili

* almond pulp cheese with crackers

* fajitas

* green salad with sprouts, pecans and mesclun mix

* mango pie

* chocolate coconut macaroons

One of the guests, who has a severe allergy to avocados, found a delicious alternative — peas! She recommends fresh if you can get them, but says you can use frozen. Measure the frozen peas out and let them sit in cold water until they’ve begun to thaw but are still slightly frozen. Drain and “blend the heck out of them” until they have a smooth, even consistency. She used about 1 cup of peas to replace 1 avocado in the Spanish rice recipe, and said that her avocado-loving husband was devouring the avocado mixture, surprised that it wasn’t made with avocados.

spanish rice and mango pieSpanish Rice

  • 1 head shredded cauliflower
  • 1 red peppers, chopped
  • 1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped finely
  • 5 green onions, sliced thinly
  • 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 recipe of Spanish Avo Mix

Spanish Avo Mix

  • 1 avocado, mashed
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1 Tbs basil
  • 1 Tbs paprika
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 Tbs sweetener
  • crushed red pepper, finely chopped, to taste
  • sea salt, to taste
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon cumin

Mix Avo mixture in a separate bowl, the add it to bowl with veggies and stir to coat.

This was tasty and light, and I will definitely give the avo mix recipe a try with the peas as a dip, or try replacing avocados in a recipe when I don’t have a ripe one on hand. Thanks for the recipe and the idea for an avocado replacement!

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wadorf salad

May 8th, 2010

For the workshop class on Holidays, I had planned to make the cranberry relish from Eating Without Heating: Favorite Recipes from Teens Who Love Raw Food by Sergei and Victoria Boutenko. However, finding fresh cranberries in the spring is a bit of a challenge, so I settled on a tasty Waldorf salad instead.

I discovered this gem of a cookbook at the Glastonbury Library: The Raw Transformation: Energizing Your Life with Living Foods. Nestled inside this book you will find a number of delicious recipes, including the following:

raw waldorf saladApple Waldorf Salad

Salad:

  • 4 apples, chopped into small pieces
  • 4 stalks celery, minced
  • 2 green onions, minced
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/4 cup raisins, soaked 1 hour

Mayonnaise:

  • 1/2 cups pine nuts, soak 6 hrs
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 2-3 Tbs olive oil
  • 1-2 Tbs lemon juice
  • dash garlic powder
  • dash onion powder
  • sea salt to taste
  1. Mix salad ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
  2. To make mayonnaise, blend all ingredients until smooth. If too thick, add a little water.
  3. Carefully fold into salad mixture. Serves 4.

Short on celery, I added some diced fennel as well. And because I couldn’t let go of the cranberry thing, I added raisins and dried cranberries. Since the chives in my yard are thick and luscious, I used those instead of green onions. I like apple skins so I left them on, tho both Oscar and the author recommend peeling the apples. In the fall, when organic grapes are more readily available I would definitely try replacing the dried fruit with them.

According to everything I read online (so we all know this means it must be true!) about the history of this dish, it started pleasing crowds more than one hundred years ago when it was developed by the maitre d’hotel of the Waldorf Hotel, Oscar Tschirky. His original recipe, published in The Cook Book by Oscar of the Waldorf, 1896, is as follows:

Peel two raw apples and cut them into small pieces, say about half and inch square, also cut some celery the same way, and mix it with the apple. Be very careful not to let any seeds of the apples be mixed with it. The salad must be dressed with a good mayonnaise.

The link to the cookbook allows you to thumb through the original book, a history lesson in itself. Ever wonder how to make Beef Tea or Beef Jelly? Just turn to the soups section to find out.  The Preface and information at the beginning of the book are worth a look, and include a listing of seasons for many common foods. I found some of the granites ( italian ices) and the apple (and other flavors) water ices intriguing.  And I’m struck by the unusual ingredients and flavors throughout the book — Brown Bread Ice Cream anyone?

Anyway, enjoy this raw vegan version of the classic Waldorf salad. It goes really well with the ever-scrumptious stuffing or can be tasty picnic fare for the summer.

Yum!

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our class raw potluck

May 6th, 2010

raw potluck and some workshop studentsHi everyone!

Yesterday was the last day of the raw class we taught at Greenspring. It was a fantastic 12 weeks and we received lots of positive feedback which we are ever so grateful for!!

For the last class, we had a raw potluck to share a couple of our favorite dishes and give the students a chance to spread their wings and bring in a raw recipe and dish to share with the class. What a beautiful display!! We were so happy to see how everyone really took on the challenge and made some remarkable dishes. We’ve left the pictures really big, so if you click on them, you can see the dishes better.

There was so much variety:

raw potluck dishes* a beautiful garden salad with homegrown sprouts with a citrus dill vinaigrette – nice and light and the dressing had a fabulous tang.

* an Italian salad of simply cut oranges with red pepper flakes, onions and oil and vinegar was a flavorful and colorful dish

* guacamole beautifully dressed up with red pepper left nice and chunky

* one student got so excited she just couldn’t stop the creative juices from flowing and brought three dishes in! One was a balsamic dressing served over tomato and avocado. The lemon bars were superb with strawberries and chocolate sauce. Her last dish, black bean brownies, demonstrated nutritious cooked options. They were rich, fudgy and all gone!

* dehydrated pear and peaches looked pretty and were a light, sweet chip.

*crudites were served with a pumpkin seed pate which was a lovely light green color that really felt like spring. This same student brought in a dessert –  chocolate coconut balls.

* another student who is obviously an artist in the kitchen brought in a version of the coconut white cake in the form of cupcakes with filling in the middle, cashew cream frosting and elegant decor of slivered almond atop. She made a chocolate version, and an alternative made with almond butter instead of tahini as well. They looked stunning.

littles sucking down sprouts* a big bowl bursting with nutrient packed homegrown sunflower sprouts with velvety white cream sauce was a hit among the little ones as they went back for seconds and thirds. I heard Lucia say, “I could eat these every night for dinner if I wanted to ya know!” I loved it!!

* fruit salad was also gobbled up by the littles with big smiles on their faces

* Pad Thai seemed to be a hit and I happily recited the ingredients to many who said, ” I must have that recipe.”

One of the best parts of getting together with others in this way is everyone brings such a unique quality to the experience. I love sharing my favorite dishes and trying others creations. It is a wonderful way to sample recipes you may have not come across yet or ones that include flavors you do not typically use in your kitchen. You go with one recipe and come away with so many more and you now know how they taste. Potlucks are a great way to quickly expand your repertoire.

It is also important to have community. Going to a raw potluck or hosting one does just that. It is a good way to connect with others and discuss successes and challenges, get feedback and share experiences.

So, here’s to you, our raw class participants and friends!! We so enjoyed the experience and hope you did as well!

In gratitude!!

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satisfying sprouts

April 28th, 2010

We have been enjoying the process (and taste!) of growing sprouts at our house. We are all amazed at how quickly changes happen with our plant babies, and my babies love to devour our tender greens. We have been growing 4 trays, and find that it just about gives us a week’s worth of yum until our next trays come on board. We’re still refining the process, as the peas grow faster at first, though the buckwheat catches up pretty quickly, and sunflowers lag behind. Next week I’ll try staggering their starts, but for now I’m still starting the soak at the same time.

I snapped a shot of all four of the trays that we showed the planting process so that you can see what they looked like when we took the covers off. In retrospect, I would have left the covers on the sunflower a little longer, as these sleepy sprouts took a long time to cast off their little black caps and come out to play in the sunshine. But even so, they managed nicely and are now ready for the table.

First up, we have the buckwheat.

You can see the yellowish color, no green since I’d just taken the lid off and they’d been in total darkness until now. You can also see the white fuzzy roots that are often mistaken for mold — I had read about this, so while I watched it carefully, I was not quick to give up on them, and as it turns out, the book was right! These are just the tiny hairs on the roots, and not some nasty fungus that doomed my little crop.

They greened up pretty quickly, but I didn’t snap a picture until a few days later, when most of them had cast off their seed hull of their own accord and peeked out over the sides of the tray.

I love the way this picture shows our buckwheat babies emerging from the sunlight in their sunny southern window. This reminds me of something I read once about plants, about eating plants is like eating sunlight. I still am agog at the fact that plants convert sunlight into tangible energy. Just think what we could do for our energy crisis if we could figure that one out! Anyway, what I’d come across was something to the effect of that:  plants covert sunlight into plant matter, so by eating raw, unadulterated plants we are in a way eating sunlight.  Now back to our regularly scheduled program…

The other two seeds we’d started that day were sunflower and peas — here they are the day I took the cover off:

Sunflowers on the left, probably could have used another day or so in the dark. Peas on the right have 2 inch or so shoots that are ready to green up. Lucia pointed out that the pea shoots grow up out of the pea, which stays on the soil surface. The buckwheat and sunflowers grow different, carrying their seed coats up with them  until the shoot is strong enough to cast them off.

Here’s a shot of the pea shoots one day after the above pic — look how much greener and taller:

I haven’t captured a “final stage” pic of the sprouts yet, guess I’m too busy eating them! But you can get a sense of what the pea and sunflower sprouts look like in our dinner from last night. We’ve talked about incorporating more raw foods into your diet by just adding one meal a day (usually starting with breakfast, choosing a smoothie or fruit instead of bagel or cereal), then two, and then having more raw food as sides at dinner. Last night’s dinner is a good example of this. I was trying out some relatively new dishes, so I defrosted some lentil soup and heated that up, knowing that Dante and Lucia would at the very least eat that.

So I got out some collards, destemmed and cut them in half, and whipped up some tangy carrot salad, or a variation thereof.  This has been a favorite recently — it’s quick to come together and can be made from stuff I usually have on hand, leaving out what I don’t and adding in what I do. I chop the nuts and leave them separate so that they aren’t soggy in the leftovers. I put these out as a little craft project at the dinner table — and Dante at a whole carrot-salad-filled collard wrap as part of his dinner. The first few times I made this salad, he ate a bite and said he didn’t like it. Granted, each time I’ve made it I’ve had different things on hand, but this time he ate it. So there’s something to be said for continuing to serve things and waiting for appreciation to come after many tries.

I’d made the cream sauce for the sprouts before I shredded the carrots in the food processor, and since Lucia wanted to try the sauce I gave her a bowl of carrot shreds with some sauce drizzled on it. I added an extra clove of garlic to the sauce (who’s surprised? anyone? anyone?) so it was packin some heat, but both she and her brother ended up eating a small bowl of this as part of their dinner.

And in addition to carrot wraps and lentil soup, I served a big bed of pea and sunflower sprouts with velvety smooth cream sauce. Oh my. It was delicious! Lucia at first asked for a bowl of plain sprouts, but after finishing her carrots, she asked for cream sauce on them as well. And in fact, I just drizzled some on since I knew she found the sauce to be spicy, and she demanded more — nearly double! I loved the texture and flavor of this dish, but we all agreed that we felt slightly rabbit-like, sucking a forkful of sprouts in as we chewed, so next time I will probably chop the sprouts up a bit before serving, or serve them with a knife so people can chop their own.

Can’t rave enough about the sprouts — and they’re soo kid-friendly too on many levels. Definitely consider giving them a try so that by next winter you’re comfortable with the process and are ready to have fresh, local greens all winter long!

Happy sprouting!

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The Infamous Fruit Salad

April 5th, 2010

When getting together with family or friends, I always try to bring a dish to share that is family friendly really meaning the adults will like it and the kids will like it, too. I am the one in particular in the family that is also known for being super health conscious and particular about food choices. I love when I bring dishes that are loved by all.

To me, the fruit salad is one of the best choices in the world. It is easy to throw together, can be made with so much variety, what is on sale or wild and exotic and everyone around the table loves it.

Be creative and think in season and see what you can find that is fresh and local. In the summer, you can make a lovely red white and blue salad with organic strawberries, organic blueberries and chunks of apple. Or go for a more tropical bowl of mango, banana, papaya and kiwi. It is also fun to hollow out a watermelon and fill it with fruit when it is in season. In the fall, go for the plums, pears and grapes with apple. In the winter, I slow down on the fruit salad since there is not much in season but you could do a melon, banana, apple type dish.

Today we are going to visit family and I am bringing the fruit bowl. I cut up cantaloupe and tossed it with small oranges and grapes. I added mint cut chiffanode and a drizzle of honey. Of course, I taste tested along the way and can’t wait until later when I can have a whole bowl full.

Adding the mint is another area you can be quite creative. Mint is a favorite of mine for fruit salad but again you can vary this depending on what is growing in the garden and what fruits you have in your salad. Seeds like hemp, poppy and sesame also add a new twist.

Any leftover fruit and herbs can be put in the blender and whizzed up for a smoothie or freeze the fruit whole and take out for frozen little snacks. There is really no way you can go wrong with the fruit salad and I just know it will be enjoyed by everyone.

Dig in!

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Velvety Smooth Cream Sauce

April 3rd, 2010

We are a family divided. My husband, Dan and River tend to like white sauces like cream sauce or Alfredo where Gatlin and I tend to like marinara. Ok, to be honest, I could go either way and actually like half marinara and half white sauce over my noodles. I wouldn’t want to leave anyone out!

A few months ago, I made dinner for our date night and was thrilled with the results of this dish. Kudos to Carmella at Raw Freedom Community for this one. The sauce is part of her Spinach and Cream Pasta Casserole. It is so quick and super yummy. The sauce is a great addition to your recipe box as a sauce for zucchini or carrot noodles or on top of fresh green beans, pea pods or sprout salads.

Cream Sauce

  • 1 c. cashews and/or macadamias
  • 1/2 to 3/4 c. water
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/4 c. lemon juice
  • 1 tsp. salt
  1. Put the nuts in your blender and grind them up until as fine as possible.
  2. Add the other ingredients and blend until smooth and creamy.
  3. Add water slowly so you end up with a desired thickness.
  4. Pour over your noodles or dish you are serving it and that is it.

I like the creaminess of cashews and tend to use just those. Feel free to add more garlic if that’s the way you like it. It stays beautiful white in color, but you could easily adapt this sauce by adding some sun-dried tomatoes or mushrooms for a new flavor.

This one is a sure favorite. You can add some marinated mushrooms or spinach marinated in salt and olive oil for a special touch!

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Pasta Marinara

April 2nd, 2010

One of our favorites was always pasta with marinara sauce. I used to love pasta night because it was quick and easy. When we started adjusting our diet years back, I switched over from wheat to rice pasta and still good ‘ole faithful marinara sauce. Well, time for more change led us to a new twist on our old fave! We still have pasta marinara but the sauce is raw and our noodles are spiralized zucchini, carrot, summer squash or other veggies we can create twisties with!

I have tried several marinara sauces but I must say my absolute favorite and the biggest crowd-pleaser is from Living On live Food which is Alissa Cohen’s fantastic raw recipe book. It is easy to make and reaches all the taste buds with a bang!

To prepare the veggies you will use a spiralizer. Get the kids in on this one! They love doing this part. Spiralizers (you can get one in the Bodega) are a fairly inexpensive kitchen gadget and can add a great deal to your ability to make raw pasta. If you do not have one yet, you can use your vegetable peeler to make wide noodles.

Marinara Sauce

  • 2 1/2 c. tomatoes
  • 12 sundried tomatoes, soaked
  • 3 dates, pitted and soaked
  • 1/4 c. olive oil
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 TBS parsley
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1/8 tsp cayenne
  1. Put all ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth.
  2. Pour sauce over you noodles and eat!

You can also marinate the zucchini after spiralizing it in lightly salted water. This will soften the noodles and release some of the water of the vegetable. It is not necessary to do this but is a nice thing to try.

I like to vary the sauce as well. Adding fresh basil or other fresh herbs I have and I do prefer to add a few more dates. Other than that I stick fairly close to Alissa’s recipe.

Remember the toppings. We are talking about pasta here so, add some nutritional yeast for your parmesan, top with minced sundried tomatoes, capers, minced yellow pepper and a spring of fresh parsley or basil. Voila!

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kale tahini salad

March 27th, 2010

kale tahini saladI’m glad Sabrina posted on how to make your own tahini — buying it in the jars can be an expensive proposition, and it’s easy to make at home. Fats are altered when exposed to heat, so processing tahini at home enables you to be sure it never gets hot enough to denature. If the nut or seed butter does start to heat up during processing, you can always turn it off, tidy up the kitchen, wash some dishes, etc, and turn it back on again when things have had a chance to cool down.

I don’t often use oil when I make tahini, but if I do, I tend to use sesame oil. I pour the seeds into the Vita-Mix and put the plunger in the lid. As it starts to process, the paste starts to climb the sides of the blender carafe. I use the plunger to push them back down toward the blade and repeat the process for several minutes, until the oils start to release and the paste becomes smooth.

I just made some the other day, and used it to make one of my favorite kale recipes. This kale-tahini recipe can be used as a fresh salad, with red peppers or in-season cherry tomatoes for a splash of color. Alternatively, it works well when dehydrated as kale chips. This dressing clings to the kale and adds a cheesy note to the dried chips. The recipe below makes a big enough batch to dress 2 heads of curly kale (which takes more dressing than lacinato) as well as leave almost a pint left as dip for crudite (another lovely way to enjoy this dressing).

Kale Tahini Salad

  • tahini dressing in the blender1 1/2 cups tahini
  • 1/4 cup tamari
  • 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1 cup water
  • 4 scallions
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
  • salt to taste
  • dollop of honey
  • 2 heads of kale
  1. Prepare the kale. I pull the kale off the ribs (you can save the ribs for soup stock — I keep a ziplock bag in the freezer and keep adding carrot tops, broccoli stems, etc until I have enough to make stock) and rinse it in the salad spinner. I then gather it into a tight clump on the cutting board, chop it into bite-size pieces and toss it into a big bowl.
  2. You can massage some salt at this step and allow it time to wilt down, but I don’t often have the patience for this so I pour on the dressing once the kale is washed and chopped.
  3. I make the tahini in the Vita-Mix, measure out half a cup and put the rest in a jar in the fridge for other purposes.
  4. Without rinsing the carafe, I put all the other ingredients in except the salt and kale. After processing to a smooth consistency, I taste it and add salt accordingly. I also like to add something sweet to cut the acid, so I add a spoonful of honey with the salt. Not enough to taste it, just enough to cut the bite.
  5. After mixing the dressing thoroughly into the kale, I toss in whatever veggies we’ve got that will add some color — usually cherry tomatoes or red peppers and red onion. Sometimes I add hemp or pumpkin seeds, sometimes carrot shreds. I’m looking for a splash of color, and a touch of sweetness and a bit of a crunch.

I was going to take a lovely photo of the salad all mixed and plated, but alas, Luke came home from work and snarfled what I”d left after my lunch all down in one sitting. Needless to say, we LOVE this salad, and find it to be very filling as well. What more can you ask from a salad? YUM!

What do you like to do with tahini?

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